Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Festival Round-Up

Something extraordinary happened in Picton one cold and windy
night last November. Hundreds of people, young and old and in-between, emerged from
the darkness to parade through our small town.

Photo: Emily Mountney-Lessard/The Intelligencer

They proudly held aloft lanterns
they'd made with their own hands at one of our workshops over the previous
month. Some revelers were draped in twinkling lights; others were dressed like
Spider-Man or walking on stilts.

Photo: Emily Mountney-Lessard/The Intelligencer

Following behind a giant puppet, we paraded down Main
Street, smiling at familiar faces and in sheer amazement of each other.

Making our way inside, the crowd discovered the building
transformed into a magical wonderland; a flock of white birds was frozen
mid-flight overhead, a wide-eyed owl hung above the stage; a giant pink tent
lit with black lights welcomed kids with colouring and crafts. We admired each others' costumes and lanterns.

Photo: Ramesh Pooran

And then the
performances began. Our local rock stars D’Ari Lisle and Mel Larkin took the stage first with
their sweet and groovy sounds. We were so proud to showcase such amazing
homegrown talent.

Photo - Michael Lindon

Next up was a reprise of our shadow puppetry play inspired by a local legend, The Monster of Lake on the Mountain.

Finally, The Lemon Bucket Orkestra took the stage and proceeded
to blow everyone away with their sheer awesomeness. They describe themselves as
a “Balkan-Klezmer-Gypsy-Party-Punk-Super Band,” and they won the audience over
immediately.

Photo: Michael Lindon

What made their performance so special was they included all of us
in it, leading us through energetic folk dances and a having us all sing along.

Photo: Ramesh Pooran

I am not exaggerating when I say this was one of the best nights
of my life.

Photo: Emily Mountney-Lessard/The Intelligencer

Thank you to all who helped make our second festival happen; such a spectacular
evening is only possible with the hearts and hands of many.

The next Firelight Lantern Festival will take place November 14,
2015. If you want to get involved or keep informed about workshops, you can subscribe to
this blog, join our Facebook page, or email me at krista(at)smallpondarts.ca